Glenn O'Reilly, Electrical Engineer, ESB

What’s your name, job title and employer?

My name is Glenn O'Reilly and I’m the substation design engineer for ESB

What are the main tasks you do in your job in a normal week?

My job involves electrical schematics and preparing and issuing electrical schematics for substation projects and design project management, so coordinating different disciplines such as civil engineers, electrical engineers and telecoms engineers and safety is obviously a huge part of my job and is inherently a part of everything we do with ESB. Different safety aspects such as design risk assessments and preliminary health safety plans for substation projects form a large part of my work and need to be completed to an exact standard.

How did you get into your job?

In college I did a degree electrical and electronic engineering at TU Dublin, towards the end of my degree I applied for the ESB graduate programme and then went for the interview and I was successful with that application. During my degree as I completed an ESB undergraduate placement which involved me going and working in ESB for six months and I suppose that gave me a good taste of what ESB had to offer and how the organisation operated and how the job worked.

What advice would you give to a college student?

The advice I would give to my younger self or any other graduates at the moment would be to get involved in activities that will help your career such as any part-time jobs or volunteering that might be relatable or would help develop both your hard and soft skills.

What skills do you need to be successful in your role?

The main skills to succeed my role are good communication, ability to work in a team, good organisation and the ability to work under pressure and and be flexible and dynamic in your approach to your work. While in college I got to develop my communication skills and the ability to work in a team as well as working in retail throughout college. Problem-solving skills and working dynamically was encouraged when I started the graduate programme and the training that ESB provided helped me to develop those skills.

What do you love about your job?

My favourite thing about working in ESB is working in a fast fast-paced, challenging environment. I like thinking on my feet and problem solving and getting to work with other like-minded people on a variety of interesting projects.